Hock walker? - Page 1

Is this what they mean when they refer to a dog as a "hock walker"? I saw this in an advertisement earlier, this just didn't look normal to me. Not trying to stur anything up, but is this what they mean?

no, a hock walker "walks" on its hocks this dog is gaiting.

gaiting is a learned skill where a dog reaches (front and back) as much as possible with pressure on the leash. notice how far forward the dogs hind leg is. there's no way for a dog to extend so far without looking like this.

this dog would look normal if it were just walking unleashed in a yard or field.

No, he wouldn´t look normal at all. This dog is overangled. We call it a "rabbit walk". That´s exactly what we don´t want to have in breed anymore.
This structure isn´t good for a "working dog" and that´s what GSD should be (even the show dogs).
A well angled dog has an extensive movement without walking on his elbows, just walking on his paws!

10 week old Sampson must be a genius then, for "learning" to gait on his paws.

Which is a "hock walker"?


A.


B.


C.

Til while it may be of the working breed it is not of the line, as you already know.  I believe they should go by another breed name.


Can a regular/ standard working line GSD be trained to walk this way?  Or do you have to change the stuucture over a period of time through selective breeding for it to be able to be trained to walk this way?

sitas mom, there is no way that's normal.  And in your pictures neither A, or C are "should" be normal.  The structure on C isn't so bad, but the leg closest to the person....  I will gladly stick to my straight back, nicely structured working line dog who walks on his paws.

While conformation helps to accentuate this gait, many can be taught to walk this way. Encouraging a GSD to keep a taught lead, head higher and use its hind legs to be the power and not to scramble with its front. The dog must develop certain groups of muscles to do this. It takes lots of time and conditioning. I have seen working lines trained to do this, but not very often because its usually not a priority for working line people to do well in the show ring. Next time I see a working line do this, I will have to take photos!

I'd be VERY surprised if you DO find a working line dog gaiting this way.

To get the hock flat on the ground like that requires two things: overangulation (with a long upper thigh), and loose ligaments. The American GSD has been bred this way for many years, and breeders actually select for loose ligaments, so they can get that flashy extended trot. Of course, loose ligamentation of the joints means the dog is prone to joint problems if it should actually have to do anything other than trot in a circle as fast as it can.

Now the German showline people are going this route as well. Good luck...   



Someone needs to show showline people the breed standard. I've highlighted the key points:

The German Shepherd Dog is a trotting dog.  The limbs must be so coordinated in length and angulation that, without noticeable alteration of the topline, the rear legs can propel to the body while the forelegs extend to an equal distance.  Any tendency to overangulation of the hindquarters reduces the firmness and endurance, and consequently the working ability.  Correct body proportions and angulations result in a flat over the ground, far reaching, ground covering gait giving the impression of an effortless propulsion.  
 

BTW, the trot is supposed to be a two-beat gait where diagonally opposite legs strike the ground at the same time. I don't know how or when the definition got changed by the GSD showline people. Or maybe they no longer trot. There's a gait horses do where the front leg is extended parallel to the ground like that. I believe it's called the Spanish step.

The gait that dog in the above picture is doing is certainly neither balanced, nor, by any stretch of the imagination can it be considered 'flat over the ground'!

No not a hock walker, but its not bloody natural either :(